High-Value Purchases Demand High-Integrity Feedback
The high value of product and service purchases significantly increases the importance of trust. Customers rely heavily on the integrity of the intermediaries involved in the transaction — including OEMs, dealers, lease companies, and brokers.
In this environment, the credibility of information sources is critical to building and maintaining consumer confidence.
🔒 Purchaser Verified Platforms (PVPs) — Invite-Only
Reputation Strategy Hinges on the Provenance of Reviews
Invite-only PVPs restrict reviews to customers who have genuinely purchased a product or service and whose interactions have been verified. Each review represents a real, authenticated experience.
Why businesses choose PVPs:
- Guaranteed authenticity and reliable data
- Protection against fake, malicious, or misleading reviews
- Deeper insight into key customer touchpoints
- A secure, two-way communication channel for post-survey engagement
🌐 Open Review Platforms (ORPs)
When Anyone Can Review, Is There Any Risk?
Open review platforms allow anyone to leave feedback — regardless of whether they have made a purchase. They prioritise accessibility, scale, and spontaneity.
Why brands choose ORPs:
- Speed and convenience
- Broad reach and visibility
- Media-facing labelling and promotion for subscribing businesses
- Suitability across a wide range of industries and services
⚖️ PVP vs ORP: Which Is the Right Choice?
Visibility Matters, but Credibility Decides
PVPs offer control, authenticity, and targeted insight, while ORPs provide reach, spontaneity, and public visibility.
The right approach depends on a brand’s priorities and the importance it places on verified feedback within its reputation strategy.
What is increasingly clear — and well documented through media scrutiny — is that openness introduces vulnerability.
Fake reviews, competitor interference, and irrelevant feedback can dilute trust and potentially damage brand credibility.
✅ Why Verified Reviews Matter
Authenticity Isn’t Just Ethical — It’s Enforceable
Ensuring reviews are genuine is no longer solely the responsibility of review platforms.
Brands must be able to demonstrate that they have taken the “reasonable steps” required by regulators, including compliance with:
- The CMA guidance
- The DMCC Act
- The FTC Final Rule
- The EU Omnibus Directives
APD review verification is therefore essential — not to undermine platforms, but to complement them, support their clients, strengthen consumer confidence, and maintain trust across the entire review ecosystem.
